I’m REALLY excited to share this week’s podcast episode with you. It’s been a long time coming. In fact, a few months ago I promised to make a whole episode about my Sunday Basket™ Workshops when I got them all figured out. Well, guess what. I did!

This is the episode telling you everything that you need to know.

The Evolution of The Sunday Basket™

Anyone who knows me, and all fans of Organize 365, pretty much must know about my Sunday Basket™. It's something that I’ve mentioned, oh, perhaps maybe once or twice!

I truly believe that the Sunday Basket™ is a simple,yet revolutionary concept that can really help you run your house, stay on top of your to-dos, and keep track of your ideas.

It all started 15 years ago when I was trying to figure out my own way to stop drowning in the ever-growing piles of paperwork, bills, lists, and everything that landed on my kitchen counter!

My Sunday Basket™ concept has been the feature of many of my blog posts, podcast episodes, and a book.

Not only did their popularity blow me away, but something else really surprised me and that was WHY people were attending my virtual workshops. It wasn’t what I had thought! It wasn’t necessarily to learn what a Sunday Basket™ was, or how to use it, it was more for ACCOUNTABILITY.

People were attending because they knew that they’d get the job done… there and then… and feel a lot better for it!

This brought me back to 2012 when I ran paper organizing workshops in my home in Cincinnati, Ohio. Similar to the virtual workshops, people usually came to my in-home workshops for accountability and reassurance. Reassurance about their organizing habits and reassurance that it’s okay to get rid of things! In the podcast episode, I share with you a few funny stories about this!

The Birth of the Sunday Basket™ Workshop Licensing System

I had a light bulb moment. The virtual workshops have many merits and they work, but actually meeting and talking to people in person is much more impactful. So I established the Sunday Basket™ Licensing System, whereby licensees could hold their own Sunday Basket™ Workshops around the country based on lessons and materials that I developed.

I’m excited to share that there are currently eleven Sunday Basket™ licensees around the country (actually 10 in the US and 1 in Canada)... and I’m looking for more!

Sunday Basket™ licensees hold 90 minute Sunday Basket™ Workshops just like the virtual workshops that I hold, but in the city that they live in and in whatever setting that suits them best... be it at their home, an office, a community center… wherever they see suitable.

If you want to join the Sunday Basket™ Licensee team, the next online training sessions will be held during August, 2017. Also included is an online portal of training videos, access to past training, a monthly newsletter with workshop themed ideas, a private Facebook group, and a listing for your business and all of your events on my site, thesundaybasket.com. Licensees are also able to earn a commission on Organize 365 products sold at their workshops.

To find out more about this, have a listen to this week’s podcast episode and also click here. Space is limited to 20 for the upcoming August session.

Another exciting development is that all of the Organize 365 products that I make going forward will be available as printables or editable PDF downloads – when you buy one you will be able to use both depending on whether you’re an old fashioned pen and paper person (like me!) or you prefer digital. In the podcast episode, I reference:

Welcome to the final episode of my three-part series all about the different phases of life and how specific life experiences can cause them to overlap.

In this week's episode, I talk about what happens when we lose a loved one. Specifically, I focus on losing a parent.

It's rather poignant for me that when I recorded the episode, it was 8 years to the day that my father had passed away.

Losing a loved one moves you into three phases of life

Survival

When your parent passes away, immediately you're thrust into the survival phase. You have a lot to do.

You have to plan the funeral, speak to other family members, help organize the estate, and many other things at an incredibly stressful and emotional time of your life. You're in the survival phase.

Accumulation

You will accumulate a lot of belongings from your parents.

At such an emotional time, you don't want to let go of things in haste. So I recommend finding an off-site storage unit for a certain period of time just so you can take time to decide what to keep and what to let go of.

If you're anything like me, you may find yourself trading-up many items that are actually nicer than those you already have!

Downsizing & Legacy

After about a year, you enter the downsizing and legacy phase.

The legacy phase comes first and it lasts for about 3-4 years. You start to think about what you'll keep longer term that once belonged to your parents. What do you want to be a part of their legacy?

It's all about how you're going to take the essence of the person who passed away and put it to use in a meaningful way.

I really recommend finding interesting and creative ways to keep the items that carry sentimental value to you.

For example, I have a shadow box and every time I find little things that remind me of my Dad, I put them in the shadow box in the basement.

About year 5, you're going to find yourself focusing more on downsizing.

At this time, not only will you be thinking about what you want to keep that once belonged to your parents, but you start to think about yourself, too. You start to look at YOUR belongings and think about what will be YOUR legacy.

You realize that someone has to get rid of it all someday!

I could record podcasts for weeks about how different life events, in addition to our chronological age, impact what organizational phase of life we feel like we are most in at any one moment.

My goal in recording these podcasts was not for you to be able to better categorize your phase of life, but to recognize that we are all floating between the phases at any one time and can learn and grow at our own pace and stage of life.

Throughout your life, you've had parents, coaches, teachers, friends and mentors who have pushed you to be better than your excuses and bigger than your fears. What if the secret to having the confidence and courage to enrich your life and work is simply knowing how to push yourself?

The book The 5 Second Rule is a simple, one-size-fits-all solution for the one problem we all face...we hold ourselves back.

The other focuses on financial information, mainly for spouses to keep a joint record (i.e., bank details, etc.).

They are editable so you can fill one in for yourself, another for your parents, and I even fill the medical record out for my children. It's just so useful to keep all the information that you have in one simple record.

Next week, I look at how losing a close family member can affect your phase of life. I'm sure you can guess what phase you find yourself in when that happens!

I'm super excited to share with you my next series of 3 podcasts which are all about the different phases of life and how they overlap.

Most people are living in overlapping phases of life. I really want to address this topic and explore what it means for you.

This is something of a storytelling podcast - there's not a lot of direct action for you to take, but lots of learning!

I've actually been wanting to record this podcast series for about 9 months, but it's a topic that is best approached when the timing is just right! January is all about organizational projects, March is about decluttering... May is the perfect time to reflect!

It's all centered around what I consider to be the 4 phases of a woman's life.

The Childhood Phase (birth to around 18 years old) - Limited organizational requirements and heavily influenced by parents.

The Accumulation Phase (around 18-39 years old) - A period of learning and accumulating. You accumulate more and more belongings! Usually in this phase, you accumulate a spouse and family, too!

The Survival Phase (around 40-54 years old) - A mindset shift takes place at this stage. Most people are working during this phase and, in addition to that, they're looking after their family and running the household. And if you're anything like me, you're in your car all the time!

The Downsizing & Legacy Phase (age 55+) - The big clear out! Kids are moving out and you naturally start to reduce the amount of items in your house. You also begin to consider your legacy - what will you save and why?

There are three big life events that affect these phases of life - having children, becoming a caretaker for someone, and when someone close to you passes away.

This week's focus is on having children.

When we have kids, we go into full blown accumulation mode. Even the most minimalist of people can't resist accumulation when it comes to babies!

As more and more millennials are tending towards having children in their early 40's, what does this mean in terms of the stages in life?

Having a baby in your 40's = an overlap of the accumulation and the survival stage.

Next week, I look at how becoming a caretaker for someone can affect your phase of life.